Ornamented screen



1930- 4 M. F. FITZ GERALD 1,

ORNAMENTED SCREEN Filed Feb. 26, 1927 Patented June 17, 1930 UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE 4 ORNAMENTED SCREEN Application filed February 26,1927. Serial No. 171,179.

Heretofore, ornamented screens have been produced by filling in themeshes of .the entire surface of the woven-fabric section in order toobtain a base on which the design of the ornamentation and its detailscould be placed. Such filling in was commonly accomplished by dippingthe screen into a suitable adherent solidifying material, which byadhering to the strands of the meshes formed a web therein.

But by such covering and closing of all the meshes the passage of airand light through the whole screen is blocked, while the area of thescreen surface necessarily covered because lying within the outline orprofile of the design may be only a small part of the entire area of theWoven fabric.

lVhere the screen is to be used in a window, the exclusion of air andlight would be undesirable. Also, where the screen is used for afireplace, it is desirable that the glow of the fire on the hearth, andthe heat therefrom should be permitted free passage through the greaterportion of the screen. In short, the

ornamentation of the screen should not detract from its utility.

The object of my invention is to produce an ornamental screen, the bodyof which consists of open mesh fabric, for example, wire cloth, withoutintercepting the passage of light and air through those portions of thescreen not lying within the design, 'or the profile of the decorativebase upon which the details of the design are placed.

Thus, if the screen is to be used in a window, a substantial part of themeshes will be left open for the passage of light and air; and if thescreen is to be used for a fireplace, the meshes not lying within theoutlines of 9 the design will permit the passage of the glow and heat ofthe fire on the hearth.

I attain my object by filling in, in whole or part, with a suitableplastic adherent solidifying material, only those meshes of the screenwhich lie within the outlines, or profile, of the design of theornamentatlon; 1n that way to provide a web constituting a back-groundor decorative base, as it were, on which the details of the design maybe imposed as desired; the meshes lying wlthout 'efiect is desired.

the outline of the design being left open for the passage of light andair.

The filling of the meshes of the fabric to form said web may beconveniently done with a material consisting largely of a substance likeplaster of Paris and where a translucent decorative base is desired, amaterial consisting largely of a parafiin or wax may be employed. Sincethese substances are more or less brittle, and the body of the screenwill be subjected to more or less flexing in service, the decorativewebs are liable tochip and break off the strands of the fabric, unlesssecured in place by a flexible casing. There fore I encase both sides ofthe web with a skin of pliant moisture proof and heat resistingmaterial, which encasing skin functions to secure and hold thedecorative web or base firmly in the meshes of the fabric, and pre ventthe same from being chippedor broken off by the flexing of the screen inservice, as otherwise would be likely to occur.

The mode of carrying my invention into practice is hereinafter fullydescribed, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 shows in perspective a fireplace screen, the woven fabric body ofwhichis ornamented in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 shows a magnified section of the woven fabric illustratingthe'mo'de of application to the meshes lying within the outlines orprofile of the design,of the fillingin material which shall constitutethe decorative base of the design; and

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2 looking in the directionindicated or pointed toby the arrows and illustrates the making of thedecorative base in relief where such In carrying my invention intopractice, I first draw an outline of the design on the woven fabric bodyof my screen, and then produce a web in those of the meshes of thefabric'lying within said outline, by filling in such meshes with asuitable plastic, adhesive material, capable of attaining substantialsolidity.

In that way a web is formed in said meshes which provide the decorativebase upon which the details of the design may be placed.

The said filler may consist of gesso, by itself which is a compound ofcalcium sulphate similar in its characteristics to plaster of Paris, orthickened with wood flour, or other suitable material, and colored asdesired by mixing therewith oil paint. The filler may be applied by aspatula.

On the webs or decorative base so produced, may then be painted thedetails of the design. The painting may be-done in water colors, or inoil.

lVhere the design is to be finished in relief, or embossed effect, woodflour or similar suitable material may be mixed with the oil painttogether with a suitable color and with gesso, or other binder, toproduce a plastic mass with which the relief effect may be worked out,as in modeling; and the relief base of the decorative design soproduced, may then be further ornamented by placing thereon the detailsof the design, and the finished product coated over by a suitableprotective varnish.

As mentioned, Fig. 1 illustrates a screen decorated in accordance withmy invention; a representing the frame and Z) the wovenfabric bodybearing the ornamentation; and

Fig. 2 represents an enlarged, or magnified, section of the portion ofthe woven-fabric body I) on the surface of which the web or decorativebase, as c, is produced as mentioned. In order toillustrate the mode ofworking my method, the left hand, upper portion of the web or decorativebase a as shown in: Fig. 2 has a portion of the details of the designimposed thereon, whilethe other portion of the web or decorative'base isshown as representing a merearea or surface enclosed by the outline ofthe design, without the details of the design having as yet been placedthereon. In the section Fig. 3 the decorative base is formed asmentioned so as toprovidea relief effect, as at d.

When the screen is to be used for a window, the Web in the meshes of itswoven-fabric body should be produced of translucent material. Suchmaterial is available in paraffin. The paraflin is first renderedplastic by heating, and is then applied with a spatula to the mesheslying within the outlines of the design to be imposed upon the screen.

Finally the surface of both sides of the web of the filled-in area, thatis the decorative base, must be coated with the elastic moisture andheat resisting material, preferably a suitable transparent varnish, inorder to 'encase both sides of the web with a transparent elastic skinwhose edge is then firmly secured to the meshes of the fabric lyingwithout the web or decorative base, and thereby to prevent the chippingand breaking off of the decorative web from the strands of the fabricconstituting the body of the screen, which chipping-or breaking off,asabove mentioned, would otherwise be liable to occur, due to theunavoidable flexing of the screen in service. Incidentally the said skincovering protects the design against heat and moisture to which it maybe exposed in service.

In my experience, I found it best to give the said surfaces not lessthan two coats of varnish of the character mentioned, in short the webor decorative base should be given a sufficient number of coats of thevarnish to protect the web in its entirety, and the decorations thereonplaced, from chipping or cracking or being afiected by heat, or moisturethe latter occurring in exposure, in the case of my screen being usedfor a window or door; or in the cleaning of the screen however used.

I claim:

1. An ornamental screen of the character described, comprising a body ofopen mesh fabric, a decorative Web affixed in those meshes of the fabricof the screen body lying within the outline of the ornamentation to beplaced on the screen, said decorative web consisting of a semi-resilientmaterial and hearing the embellishments of the decoration, and a skinofelastic moisture and heat proof material encasing both sides of thedecorative web and securing the same on the fabric, thereby to preventthe chipping and breaking off of the decorative web from the strands ofthe fabric by the flexing of the screen body.

2. An ornamental screen of the character described, comprising a body ofopen mesh fabric, a decorative web affixed in those meshes of the fabricof the screen body lying within-the outline of the ornamentation to beplaced on the screen, said decorative web consisting of semi-resilienttranslucent material and bearing, the embellishments of the decoration,and a skin of elastic moisture and heat proof material encasing bothsides of the decorative web and securing the same on the fabric, therebyto prevent the chipping and breaking. off of the decorative web from thestrands of the fabric by the flexing of the screen body.

MARION FORSYTH FITZ GERALD.

